Schnabel-type railroad cars are divisible into two identical parts so that a load can be supported between the two parts and thereby transported at a lower overall height. When the load has been delivered the two divisible portions of the car can be coupled together to form a unitary body which is returned to be used to carry another load.
With the development of ever increasingly large loads such as typified by electrical generators or nuclear reactors schnabel cars have grown ever larger in size presenting increasing problems in roadbed clearance. Car lengths have grown to the point where it may be difficult to negotiate tight turns in roadbeds originally designed for cars of a much shorter length. It thus becomes desirable to be able to pivot the load at the minimum length possible while still carrying the main weight of the load over a larger number of trucks. Accordingly reduced pivot schnabel cars have been developed which pivot at shorter radiuses but carry the load over longer lengths. Prior art designs have been exceedingly complicated and the design complications have been aggravated by the desire to provide vertical adjustment to the load in order to permit the car to negotiate existing underpasses. Our invention provides a much simplified design which permits the desired articulation of the car utilizing reduced pivots, lateral displacement of the load, and vertical displacement of the load.